Land Use Change from Rice to Maize Farming in Northern Region of Bangladesh: Identifying Causes and Future Prospects
Shahana Khatun Bipasha
Agricultural Economics (Production Economics), Department of Agricultural Economics, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202, Bangladesh.
Mahmuda Nasrin
*
Department of Agricultural Economics, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202, Bangladesh.
Md. Monirul Islam
Department of Agricultural Economics, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202, Bangladesh.
Pooja Vortia
Agricultural Economics (Production Economics), Department of Agricultural Economics, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202, Bangladesh.
Farzana Yeasmin
Department of Agricultural Economics, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202, Bangladesh.
Kamrul Islam
Department of Agriculture Extension, Puthia Upazila, Rajshahi, Bangladesh.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Maize is gaining importance in recent years as a promising crop, but some constraints are intensifying with increased concern over input supply and soil-related environmental sustainability. So, we were interested to assess the financial profitability of maize production over the existing rice cropping system and factors responsible for changing land-use decisions in Northern Bangladesh. The comprehensive comparison revealed that maize farmers got higher returns than the farmers producing boro rice as the calculated BCR for the former (2.14) was higher than the later (1.29). The results of regression analysis showed that maize labor use, maize gross margin, availability of rice for home consumption, and the least rice-producing area had a significant effect on deciding to shift the land from rice to maize cultivation. Therefore, there was a great prospect of maize farming in the study area as a profitable enterprise.
Keywords: Land-use change, maize, boro rice, marketing system, regression analysis